Subdivision Proposed On 157 Acres

October 22, 2005|By DANIEL P. JONES; Courant Staff Writer

AVON — Local developers have proposed a major subdivision of 113 single-family homes on what the town planner calls one of the largest remaining and one of the most environmentally-challenging undeveloped parcels in town.

Avon-based Jackson Inc., whose three principals are members of the well-known Brighenti family, has applied to the planning and zoning commission for approval for the subdivision on more than 157 acres.

The land, which is in the Huckleberry Hill area close to the Canton town line, is on the west side of Lovely Street, opposite Craigemore Circle. It is in the western end of town where most of Avon's large subdivisions have been built in recent years.

``It's a beautiful piece of property,'' Jeffrey P. Brighenti, Jackson Inc.'s secretary and one of its principals, said Friday. ``There are some topographical issues, but nothing out of the ordinary.''

The developers built the nearby 165-acre Bridgewater Estates subdivision off Lovely Street. Eighty homes have been built and 38 more single-family lots are under construction.

Brighenti said Jackson is working cooperatively with the town on the new proposal.

``It's a big project,'' said Town Planner Steve Kushner. ``Of the parcels remaining [in town] it's one of the largest.''

The land also contains a significant wetland and has some steep slopes; the elevation rises more than 300 feet from Lovely Street to the western edge of the property, Kushner said.

The developers have proposed building an access road opposite Craigemore Circle that would cross wetlands in two locations, according to Kushner's written comments on the application to the planning and zoning commission.

Because of the project's impact on wetlands, the developers would need approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for it to go forward, Kushner said in his comments.

In addition, more than 30 of the proposed lots would present significant challenges to develop, requiring sizable retaining walls and extensive re-grading, he said.

The developers have proposed giving the town 17 acres of open space, well in excess of the 7.8 acres required under the town's subdivision rules.

But the 17 acres are almost entirely wetlands, according to Kushner, and have limited value to the public for recreational use. The developers' proposed open space also would be surrounded by proposed building lots.

Kushner suggested in his comments that the commission, which has some discretion when it comes to choosing locations for open space, should consider a section of the developers' property along Lovely Street.

Another alternative, Kushner said, would be to require open space in a section of the property's northwest corner. That would provide a connection to an existing plot of open space owned by the town, about 150 acres known as the Found Land.

Brighenti said those suggestions are being reviewed with the developer's engineer. ``And there will be some negotiations with the town,'' he said.

Jackson Inc. submitted its application last month and the planning and zoning commission held its first public hearing on the proposal Oct. 18. The hearing will continue Nov. 8, Kushner said.